Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) Rating Increased to Outperform at Royal Bank of Canada

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) was upgraded by research analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has a $74.00 target price on the aerospace company’s stock, up from their prior target price of $68.00. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 18.34% from the stock’s current price.

HXL has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Hexcel from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 21st. UBS Group raised their price target on Hexcel from $67.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Hexcel from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Vertical Research cut shares of Hexcel from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Hexcel from $78.00 to $76.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.33.

Hexcel Price Performance

Hexcel stock opened at $62.53 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $5.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.30. Hexcel has a one year low of $57.50 and a one year high of $77.09. The business has a fifty day moving average of $61.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 2.76.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 21st. The aerospace company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.01. Hexcel had a net margin of 5.73% and a return on equity of 9.99%. The firm had revenue of $457.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $457.07 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.38 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Hexcel will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hexcel

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HXL. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Hexcel by 277.9% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,695,343 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $105,874,000 after buying an additional 1,246,765 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Hexcel by 307.1% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,079,598 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $67,421,000 after acquiring an additional 814,402 shares during the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 215.5% during the 2nd quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 865,235 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $54,034,000 after acquiring an additional 590,975 shares during the period. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Hexcel by 280.7% in the second quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC now owns 722,290 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $45,107,000 after acquiring an additional 532,550 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Hexcel by 36.2% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,600,619 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $98,966,000 after purchasing an additional 425,402 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

About Hexcel

Hexcel Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets carbon fibers, structural reinforcements, honeycomb structures, resins, and composite materials and parts for use in commercial aerospace, space and defense, and industrial applications. It operates through two segments, Composite Materials and Engineered Products.